SVA Asks, "What Can Your Mobile Do for You?"

UPDATE: Submission deadline: June 30, 2009
Online submission form: www.outofhandfestival.com

School of Visual Arts (SVA), New York City, in partnership with Giraldi Media, announces the Out of Hand International Festival, a showcase for innovative digital content created by students worldwide and intended for playback on a mobile, PDA or other handheld device. SVA invites aspiring artists, designers, filmmakers and creative thinkers worldwide to enter original content into competition using an online submission form by June 30, 2009. A public screening and awards presentation will take place in New York City in October.

“Small screens are quickly emerging as a major means of communication and expression. We wanted to create a festival of content in your hand,” explained Bob Giraldi, veteran director and Festival co-founder. “Think of it as bringing the festival with you.”

The festival’s official web site, www.outofhandfestival.com, is designed to be a competition of digital content, 3 minutes or less, created by students 17 or older. Visitors can view, rate and comment on submissions, and find inspiration for their own projects. The site features editorials and interviews with individuals on the cutting edge of digital video and wireless technology. A grand prize of $5,000 will be awarded to the winner, along with other prizes to the runners up, including a summer residency at SVA.

The main competition is open to those enrolled in a college or university or other degree-granting institution, regardless of major or concentration. Submissions will be considered by a distinguished jury of artists and media leaders for awards in the following categories: Design; Games; Art + Animation; Short Film; and Advertising.

The Out of Hand International Festival grew out of discussions between SVA founder Silas H. Rhodes and Bob Giraldi, an award-winning television and film director who runs his own production company in Manhattan and has taught at SVA for decades. The late Mr. Rhodes was a pioneer in recruiting creative professionals from advertising, publishing and the arts to join the faculty, and before his death he approached Giraldi about launching a new festival. Giraldi and longtime collaborator, media producer Patti Greaney, devised a competition encouraging budding talent to explore the new frontier opened up by the “the fourth screen” found on wireless devices like mobile phones and PDAs.

On the faculty at SVA since 1968, Giraldi teaches a course in the BFA Advertising and Graphic Design Department entitled The Project, in which third- and fourth-year students create an original four- to five-minute film using digital video. Seizing on the technology’s affordability, ease of use and availability, Giraldi developed the course in 2002 to inspire fresh approaches to storytelling and visual communication.

For information about sponsorship opportunities, contact Melissa Saling, director, strategic planning, at 212.966.1212, extension 203, or melissa@outofhandfestival.com.

Giraldi Media has created nearly 3,000 commercials, music videos and short films and earned over 500 major industry awards. Bob Giraldi’s directing credits include Hiding Out (1987), Dinner Rush (2000), Honey Trap (2005) and Second Guessing Grandma (2008), and he has two additional motion pictures in production. Giraldi’s films have been featured at the Sundance Film Festival, the New Directors/New Films series presented by the Department of Film and Media at the Museum of Modern Art and The Film Society of Lincoln Center, and the Hamptons International Film Festival.

School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York City is an established leader and innovator in the education of artists. From its inception in 1947, the faculty has been comprised of professionals working in the arts and art-related fields. SVA provides an environment that nurtures creativity, inventiveness and experimentation, enabling students to develop a strong sense of identity and a clear direction of purpose.

Media Contact: For more information, please contact Michael Grant, director of communication, at 212.592.2011 or e-mail mgrant@sva.edu.